#ironclads

[colonel-dynamite-gun]

The Monitor and Merrimac: The First Fight Between Ironclads, Louis Prang & Co., Boston, 1886

A perfect tornado of iron and flame.

From each of the war-dogs incessantly came,

The shot fell like rain on each heavy-mailed frame,

And loudly their armor rang.

[admiralnelsoniii]

The Battle of Hampton Roads. American Civil War. The famous showdown between the Ironclads USS Monitor and CSS Virginia. Ultimately the two vessels pounded on each other for a while then went their separate ways, the outcome undecided. But it was a turning point for warship combat.

[clove-pinks]

An extraordinary find in the New York Times of May 30, 1862: "THE FIRST IRON-CLAD. Representation of the Armored Vessel, Patented by Thomas Gregg, of Pennsylvania, in 1814."

The drawings given above, copied with the kind permission of the Patent-office authorities for the use of the TIMES from the originals deposited in the Bureau, delineate a vessel proposed by THOMAS GREGG, of Pennsylvania, and for which letters patent were taken out by him March 19, 1814.

It will be seen at that early day, so soon after the original application of steam to maritime propulsion, GREGG proposed to employ that motor, protecting his propelling apparatus by a device certainly effectual, if practicable.

This futuristic vessel concept from the War of 1812 era was never built, although another steam-powered "floating battery" was constructed: USS Demologos (also called USS Fulton). @ltwilliammowett put together a great write-up of her. Made too late in the war to see combat, Demologos eventually exploded while lying at anchor in 1829.

In early March 1862, shortly before this newspaper article was published, the first battle of ironclad warships took place between USS Monitor and CSS Virginia in the American Civil War. It's fitting that the public would want to learn more about the earliest attempts at entirely steam-powered warships without sails.

[pinturasdeguerra-acorazados]

1862 Hampton Roads - Monitor vs Virginia - Howard Gerrard

via Elias Rinaldi

[sixfrigates]

March 8, 1862. The Battle of Hampton Roads begins as CSS Virginia and two other wooden warships sail into Hampton Roads to confront the Union squadron of five wooden frigates. Virginia takes a heavy toll, ramming and sinking the USS Cumberland before turning her guns on USS Congress. After an hour and a half of combat, Congress surrendered. Though the battle would continue the next day, culminating in the famous clash of the ironclads, the first day proved the superiority of ironclad warships over wooden ones and sent mass panic through Washington, D.C.

Artwork: Congress Burning by Tom Freeman

[squirtcobain]

[dmitri-the-demon]

Two pages of my sketchbook. I love drawing these little guys. 😄

[peashooter85]

The Confederate States Navy CSS Stonewall. An ironclad warship sold to the Confederacy by France.

After the American Civil War it was captured by the Union, then sold to Japan where it was recommissioned as the Kotetsu.